"Steve let's be clear on this, if you hurt her then I'll kick your ass even though I'm supposed to be your partner" Hunter said to Steve as they were both warming up inside the ring. Steve looked at Hunter as he was crouching down in the ring preparing himself mentally, "It's gotta look real Hunter" Steve replied as he started to stretch his arms, "But no I won't hurt her anymore than I have to"

"I mean it" Hunter replied, "Summer's a tough girl and I know she agreed to do this, but remember I'll pedigree her and you'll attack her with the chair, then we'll leave... okay?" Hunter asked as he stood up and looked Steve in the eye, he nodded and said "I'll be gentle okay; we'll do what needs to be done and then leave"

"Good" Hunter said and then carried on stretching to get himself prepared for the show tonight, he was a little apprehensive about beating Summer and her brothers up but he knee it needed to be done to get himself and Steve booed and hated properly. Hunter knew that the Hardyz were extremely popular and he was proud of all 3 of them for working so hard to get to where they are today. But Hunter knew that this would be difficult for Steve after everything that had happened, he'd been quiet all week and today he'd barely said two words until now.

Hunter knew Steve didn't like being questioned but he thought he'd give it a shot, "Everything okay man?"

"If you have to ask me that then you're dumber than I thought" Steve replied as he started stretching his legs. Hunter just looked at him and was surprised he was being open an honest, so he decided to pry a little further, "Things that bad?"

"I'm a fuckin' mess Paul" Steve replied and Hunter stared at him dumbfounded, what surprised him most was that he'd used his real name so he must be serious.

"Oh" is all Hunter said and looked down at his books and then up at Steve who was staring a hole into Hunter's head. He wasn't going to lie about it; he was a mess inside and didn't know how to handle it.

"Yeah, it's like that" Steve said as he continued warming up by running the ropes for a while, Hunter watched him run back and forth and waited until he'd stopped before saying "Have you ever thought about trying to talk to Summer?" Steve just stared at him like he'd grown another head; Hunter shrugged in response and gave him a look that said it was only a suggestion.

"I couldn't do that" Steve said quietly, "And she wouldn't talk to me anyway"

"How do you know that?"

"I know Summer better than anybody so I know she wouldn't talk to me"

"If you know Summer so well then you should know what to do to make her talk to you" Hunter countered making Steve look at him, he did have a point; Summer was extremely stubborn but he knew deep down she could easily be swayed by certain things... that did include chocolate, Summer's weakness was chocolate but Steve knew it wasn't the time to joke around with her.

"Hunter she wouldn't fall for chocolate, I don't think she's ready for jokes"

"All you can do is try Steve, and I don't mean with flowers or chocolates, I just mean try and talk to her about all of this"

"Talk to her about all of this? What else is there to say?" Steve asked angrily, "I caused this mess"

"Yeah and you should grow a pair and try to fix it" Hunter replied just as angrily, Steve glared at him and said "I don't know how"

"It's real simple jackass" Hunter said as he glared right back at Steve, "You think about it real hard and you decide which woman you want, you either want to travel down an old has been road, or you travel down a new road and make new memories that you'll never forget" then Hunter slid under the ropes to head backstage to go and get something to eat, but he turned around and said "You know deep down which road you wanna take, but your brain is too stubborn to admit it, stop being so damn stupid Steve and open your eyes" then he marched back up the ramp to leave Steve standing there feeling angry and extremely dazed.

-

"I can't wait for tomorrow man" Jeff said excitedly as he jumped up and down on the spot, "I'm gonna get wasted"

"I might join you" Matt replied as he was putting on his fishnets with their usual black baggy jeans, they were both getting ready for their match tonight and had some time to talk while Summer was in the gym. They loved their sister dearly but it was nice to have some time away from her so they could bond together. And what they were most excited about was the party tomorrow night, Vince threw parties very rarely but when he did they were unforgettable. He really went all out with food, drink and a fantastic venue and all the superstars and divas were invited and normally every single one of them turned up. It was a night filled with fun, laughter and a lot of music and dancing and Matt and Jeff couldn't wait for it! The only downside was that Vince always made it a formal event, meaning everybody had to wear suits and dresses, Jeff hated it because he didn't like formal clothing, it made him look like a dork.

Plus having rainbow coloured hair, it never looked right!

"Do you reckon Summer will come with us?" Jeff asked making Matt look at him and shrug, "Who knows"

"Don't you care?"

"You know I do but you know that Steve will be there, so she might not want to go"

"She should go, I'll have to talk to her to get her to come with us" Jeff replied

"I wouldn't force her bro" Matt replied, "She shouldn't go if she's just gonna mope about otherwise it'll spoil the mood"

"Yeah unfortunately that's true" Jeff replied as he put his hands on his hips and sighed, "Jeez man this is such a mess"

"I know"

"I just wish there was something we could do about it"

"But you and I both know it's not like last time, we can't lock them in a room and tell them to talk it out because we know it won't work"

"Maybe it will" Jeff was hopeful but Matt shook his head and said "I don't think so, the only reason they broke up last time was because of Steve's trust issues, but this time Steve's made a mistake by saying he's still in love with an ex after promising Summer that he wasn't. So Jeff I don't think it'll work"

"It just sucks man, they were so happy and I really was looking forward to becoming an uncle"

"We both were" Matt replied, "But things have changed and we've gotta deal with it, Summer isn't as bad as she was so maybe she will come with us tomorrow, a few drinks in her and she might perk backup"

"So what are you suggesting? We make her drink everyday to cheer her up?" Jeff asked angrily,

"No I'm not suggesting that, but maybe one night of drinking might do her good to let her hair down and have some fun"

"Yeah" Jeff said as he thought about it, "It's rare to see Sums drunk but when she is she's so funny"

"Exactly, so we've gotta get her excited about it and it'll take her mind off tonight" Matt said as he pulled his hair back into a temporary ponytail while he stretched and warmed up. Jeff's hair was already piled high up on his head, with the way he cut and styled it he was always doing different things with it. Matt however liked his long black hair and just kept it natural.

"Tonight is gonna be painful man" Jeff said as he thought about it, they were gonna get the hell beaten out of them because of Hunter, Steve and now Stephanie was involved. It was going to be an inter gender match and Hunter wanted to get his wife Stephanie involved to break her into the business. Summer didn't mind wrestling with Stephanie, but it just meant she'd have to dial it down a little bit because she didn't want to hurt Stephanie because she wasn't used to high flying moves.

So they'd gone through a few moves to practise, but Summer had ended the session when Steve had walked down the ramp with Hunter. She didn't want to be around him so she walked straight past him with her head held high and didn't say a word. Instead of moping about she'd gone to the gym to run off some excess energy and said she'd meet her brothers later on.

"Hey don't worry we'll get through it" Matt replied

"As long as he doesn't hit us too hard, I don't want to be wiped out for tomorrow"

"We'll be okay man don't worry"

"He better not hurt Summer" Jeff said darkly, "He hurts her anymore than he has too then I'll break character and kick his ass"

"Don't worry man he'll be fine about it" Matt replied as he looked at his brother who nodded and said "Yeah he might be an asshole now but I know he wouldn't physically hurt her"

"It's all been planned so stop worrying, everything will be okay" Matt slapped his brother on the back and Jeff did feel a little bit better, he'd been worrying too much about his sister lately, he just needed to relax a little bit and let things fall into place.

-

Summer had been running on the treadmill for nearly 30 minutes and the sweat was pouring down her body, she needed to stop but she didn't want to. Running was a mental release for her and it was good to let her mind wander and think things through. She was thinking about tomorrow night and was a little apprehensive about it, as much as she liked to party it was going to be difficult with Steve being there. Plus it would really piss her off if he brought Jeannie, if he brought her she'd really cause a scene and make Steve suffer. She didn't care if she embarrassed herself or the company, she'd really lay into Jeannie if she showed up.

"Fuck it" Summer said breathlessly as she hit the stop button on the treadmill and it soon slowed to a stop. She stepped off it and rested her hands on her knees to try and catch her breath, the sweat dripping onto the floor around her. Her vest was drenched in sweat but she didn't care, she felt fantastic now and felt like she could tackle anything. But she jumped when she felt somebody touch her on the shoulder, she turned around and saw Mark standing there in his workout gear with a towel around his shoulders, he too was dripping with sweat but looked happy.

"Sorry Mark I didn't see you" Summer said as she pulled her earphones out and shut off her iPod. She smiled up at Mark who said "That's alright kiddo, I came in not long after you but you were in the zone so I left you to it"

"Yeah I felt like I needed a good run" Summer replied as she took a step back from Mark and tucked her sweaty hair tendrils behind her ears. Her breathing had slowed down a little bit but she couldn't stop sweating and she didn't like it when other people saw her like this.

"What is it?" Mark asked as he noticed something looking awkward and uncomfortable, Summer just laughed a little and said "Nothing I just feel gross and don't like it when people see me like this"

"You've got nothing to worry about kiddo you look just fine to me" Mark replied as he looked her up and down without her noticing, the way she was breathing heavy was showing off her six-pack and she looked damn good. But when she looked up at him his eyes quickly travelled back up her body to lock with her eyes, she smirked and said "Admiring the view?"

Mark felt foolish for being caught but he smirked back at her and said "It's a mighty fine view"

"Are you flirting with me Mr Calaway?" Summer asked sweetly making Mark chuckle lightly and say "Was it that obvious?"

"Maybe" Summer smiled up at him making Mark shake his head, he didn't want to go down that road right now because he didn't want to go too far and make her uncomfortable.

"You ready for your match tonight?" Mark asked, switching tactics hoping to sidetrack her, Summer raised her eyebrow at him before saying "Yeah it should be good"

"But are you ready for what Hunter and Steve are gonna do?"

"It should be alright" Summer replied and then shrugged, she had nothing to say about it really because whatever happened happened. Mark noticed she wasn't giving anything away so he decided to switch tactics again, "Looking forward to the party tomorrow?"

"Are you going?" Summer asked surprised, normally he didn't go to functional events because he was 'the deadman' and had to keep his character persona up. Mark shrugged and said "I don't mind swinging by for a beer or two"

"I never thought I'd see you in a tux" Summer teased making Mark smirk and say "It's a rarity I can't deny that"

"Well I'm looking forward to seeing it" Summer replied and Mark smiled back, "Does that mean you're going? Last I heard from Hunter and Shawn you were pretty unsure" Summer looked down at the floor and sighed, "I suppose I've gotta show my face, show Steve that I'm not a coward"

"Kiddo you're not a coward, you're a young woman suffering from heartache and there's no shame in that" Summer looked up at him and smiled because it was nice for somebody to understand what she was going through, "I guess it'll be okay, maybe Steve won't turn up"

"From what I've heard he doesn't want to go" Mark replied making Summer role her eyes and say "No change there then, he doesn't like functional events because he has to dress up" she smiled a little bit, but then stopped and sighed once more, it was difficult remembering all of these things about Steve but she had to start forgetting.

"But as long as you're there having fun, you shouldn't keep worrying about what Steve's doing, he's a big boy now kiddo" Mark said as he wiped his face over with his towel and then he wrapped it around his shoulders again. Summer didn't want to ask but the question just slipped out, "How is he?" Mark looked down at her and motioned for her to walk towards one of the mats so they could sit and cool down. Summer sat cross legged and waited for Mark to sit down too, she didn't want to go down this road but she felt like she needed answers because she hadn't seen Steve for a while and she wondered where he was hiding. Was he with Jeannie? She frowned at that and then waited for Mark to speak.

"If you want me to tell you he's happy then you're living in a dream world kiddo" Mark said to Summer who kept frowning to herself, he knew she was thinking about something but he decided to carry on, "He's a complete mess and it ain't pretty"

"Oh" is all Summer could say, part of her felt like doing cartwheels around the room because she felt happy that he was suffering along with her, but then part of her felt bad for even thinking like that.

"You sound surprised?" Mark said yet asked at the same time, Summer looked at him and said "Well I guess I thought- I mean I've seen him-" Summer couldn't think of what to say so she remained quiet and just looked at Mark who just shook his head, "Summer girl why did you think he'd be happy?"

"Because he's been with Jeannie" Summer replied with a scowl but Mark shook his head and said "You got it all wrong girl"

"How'd you mean?"

"I happened to overhear that argument and it wasn't pretty"

"What argument?"

"Your brothers haven't told you?"

"Told me what?" Summer asked with a frown, what had her brothers been hiding from her?

"If they haven't told you then maybe I shouldn't say anything"

"Dammit Mark just tell me" Summer said angrily and Mark sighed and said "Steve had an argument with Jeannie and basically told her to get the hell out of his life"

"Well clearly she hasn't got the message"

"Why'd you say that?"

"Because she's still here"

"Vince won't fire her"

"Why?"

"Because she's good for Steve's heel persona"

"No she's not; it's turned him into a moody asshole"

"Exactly! That's what a heel needs to be" Mark replied and Summer just looked at him, she didn't know anything about heel characters because she'd always been face.

"Heel characters need to be moody and reckless because it really sells it to the fans, they'll believe that they're an asshole and start to boo and hate them"

"Oh right... I didn't know that" Summer said with a quizzical look making Mark smile, there was so much he could teach her about this business and he wanted to spend a lot of time with her to teach her these things.

"I didn't realise how knowledgeable you are"

"Thanks kiddo, that's what you get for being in the business for so long" Mark replied and started to feel himself blushing, he wasn't really used to compliments but Summer always had something positive to say. He knew they'd been down some bad roads but it seemed like they'd recovered from that and were moving forward.

Mark could feel his mood changing when he looked at Summer, she was beautiful and he wanted to touch her but he knew she was still too vulnerable. He'd been holding off for weeks but the temptation was getting too strong, he needed to get away from her so he quickly got up from the mat which surprised Summer. She had to look all the way up at him but had to stop because it was straining her neck; she rubbed at it and tried to ease the pain. It was fully healed but it was difficult looking all the way up now, that was the only thing she struggled with.

"Everything okay kiddo?" Mark asked concerned as he noticed Summer struggling with her neck, she looked at him and said "Yeah it's fine, I just can't look up fully anymore that's all"

"I'm sorry" is all Mark could think of to say, after all, he was the one that broke her neck. But Summer was tired of his apologies, some people thought that she was stupid for doing it, but she'd forgiven him and moved on from it. She got up from the mat and stood in front of him and placed her hand gently on his cheek, Mark froze and closed his eyes and groaned softly making Summer smile and then say gently, "Don't worry about me Mark, I forgive you for what happened so don't worry about it anymore" Mark just groaned in response and leant into her touch, it felt good to be touched like this and he didn't want her to stop. But he opened his eyes and she smiled up at him, she hadn't noticed just how green his eyes were, they were lovely.

Mark looked down at her and had the urge to kiss her, so he slowly lowered his head so he was hovering near her lips, at first he felt Summer tense up but he took the chance anyway and pressed his lips to hers. He groaned in the back of his throat and felt Summer kiss him back with more passion so he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her off her feet. Summer wrapped her legs around him and moaned when she could feel his erection pressed into her, she was surprised at how big he was and she suddenly wanted him inside her. She'd been trying to deny her feelings for a while now but kissing him now she wanted him badly.

Mark eventually pulled away and tried to catch his breath, "You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that kiddo" Summer laughed lightly and then kissed him again, Mark groaned but pulled away again and said "If I were you I'd stop otherwise I'll take you right here on the floor"

"I wouldn't mind" Summer purred and then kissed his neck making Mark chuckle but say "Come on girl we've gotta get ready for our matches" then he gently let Summer go and she stood back on the floor trying to remain standing, she still felt like jell-o and tried to calm her raging hormones down. Mark lifted her chin up with a finger and she looked into his eyes making him smile and say "Don't worry darlin' this isn't over" and Summer felt her insides do somersaults, he wanted to see her again? She'd like that so they could finish what they started!

-

Later on in the evening it was time for Matt, Jeff and Summer to head out to the ring to face Steve, Hunter and Stephanie. They were all pumped up and ready to go and both brothers were surprised that Summer was so upbeat, what had she been up to? They hadn't seen her for a few hours since she was at the gym and when she finally found them she looked dreamy eyed and in a daze. They were a little bit concerned about her but they were happy to see her in a cheerful mood.

"Let's do this!" Jeff said as he danced from foot to foot while pouring water on his head and into his mouth. Summer was pumped up too as she tightened her bandana so it didn't slip down over her eyes, she'd matched her lime green bandana with her lime green hardy boyz t-shirt and baggy pants and black and white sneakers. She felt confident with her body for the first time since breaking up with Steve, going back to the gym was helping her focus and get her head on straight.

"Remember guys, we're just as good as them!" Matt shouted as their music started sending the fans crazy, they burst out through the curtain and all 3 danced to their music and walked down the ramp. Hunter and Steve had already come out and were waiting for them inside the ring. Summer knew that Steve was watching her through the flashing lights but she decided to ignore it and continue to salute the fans and dance to the music. She slid under the ropes and ran to the term buckles and jumped onto the second one to salute the fans, with Jeff on the opposite corner doing the same. Then they both got down and stood next to Matt as the lights returned to normal and they could see Hunter, Steve and Stephanie on the opposite side of the ring. It was Matt starting with Hunter and then it would keep alternating until Summer finished the match off with Stephanie. Then Hunter would come back into the ring with a chair and attack Summer by hitting her over the head, then Steve would take the chair and attack her as well.

Summer was prepared for what was going to happen, but she wasn't prepared to see Jeannie standing outside the ring, when the hell did she sneak out? Did she walk out with the others? It did throw Summer off her game for a while but she shook her head and soon focused on the match.

She was playing cheerleader and getting the fans behind her brothers and it worked because they'd done nothing but chant 'Hardyz!' or 'Summer!' throughout the match. They nearly screamed the place down when Jeff gave Summer the tag to get in there and spear Stephanie to the mat, pulling and punching at her hair and face. Hunter pulled her off and Summer retaliated by slapping him hard in the face making the fans go wild. Matt got in the way and speared Hunter out of the ring and Jeff jumped over the ropes to land on Steve and all hell would break loose out there. It meant that Summer could end the match by giving Stephanie the twist of fate and then the moonsault for the one two three!

The fans went crazy as their music started playing and Summer stood up and saluted the fans as the ref declared her team the winners. Hunter slid back into the ring with a chair and as planned Summer had to pretend he wasn't there so when she turned around she got hit straight in the head with a thud. She'd managed to get her hands up but her head took most of the blow, she fell down to the mat and lay there seeing stars. But she didn't have time to rest because Steve would start on the chair shots soon, so she rolled onto all fours but did not expect the swift kick to the ribs which caused her to cry out because it did actually hurt. Her ribs were still tender and that kick did upset them, she tried to catch a glimpse of who did it and she was surprised to see it was Jeannie... since when was she involved in the match?! That was not planned! Summer was seeing red at the moment, she was furious but there was nothing she could do about it because Steve had to attack her. He was a dead man when they got backstage!

The smug smile on Jeannie's face didn't help her temper either!

"Shit!" Summer shouted out as Steve started with the chair shots, she rolled onto her stomach to try and protect her ribs but his chair shots were still hard on her back. Shot after shot after shot he just kept going until he rolled her onto her stomach and started nailing her in her stomach. She tried to curl up but he continued until he dropped the chair and started on Jeff as he'd tried to crawl onto Summer to protect her. But Summer was in a lot of pain and extremely pissed off that Jeannie had got involved in this match, she was only his manager and shouldn't step foot inside the ring because she wasn't trained. So Summer was going to lay into her when they got backstage!

-

"Why the hell wasn't I told about that?!" Summer shouted angrily and threw her bottle of water at the wall, "What the hell was that about!"

"I don't know sis" Jeff replied just as angrily, he was pissed off about getting hit in the head by Steve with a chair. The match went well but the aftermath turned into a disaster because of Steve and his stupid mismatched chair shots.

"Well she's not gonna get away with it the stupid dumb bitch!" Summer shouted and then marched over to where Steve was standing with Hunter. He looked pissed off and was shouting at Jeannie before Summer even got there, "Why the hell did you get involved?!" Steve shouted loudly at Jeannie who smirked and said "She deserved it"

"You had no right to get involved! What if something happened to you? You're not trained!" Steve replied and was seething, he couldn't believe that Jeannie had rolled into the ring and kicked Summer in the ribs, it shocked him completely and wanted answers. But before he could say anymore he got shoved out the way by Summer who went for Jeannie, she pushed her to the floor and said "What the fuck is your problem?! Why the hell did you do that?!" Jeannie cowered away but Summer wasn't finished, "You wanna play rough? I can play rough too!" Summer was going to go for her but was pulled away, she thought it was Steve at first but then she looked and saw that Steve was still standing there looking stunned. She tried to struggle out of the grip of whoever was holding her but she heard "She ain't worth it kiddo" and stopped struggling and looked up at Mark who still had his arms locked around her.

She shoved out of his grip and said "She had no right to do that"

"I know" Mark replied as he was pissed at what happened as well.

"And she's not getting away with it!" Summer said hotly and then glared at Steve, "And what the hell was your problem? Why the hell did you hit Jeff in the head?"

"It was an accident" Steve replied and felt uncomfortable because Summer was so angry, she glared at him and said "You make damn sure she stays the hell away from me" then she pointed at Jeannie who was still sat on the floor looking terrified, "Because if she lays one finger on me again, I won't be sorry for what happens" then Summer spun round and stormed away from Steve and Mark to go back to her brothers and all 3 of them marched down the corridor.

Steve watched her leave and was still in shock at what he just witnessed both inside and outside the ring, he couldn't believe Jeannie got involved. She had no right to get involved and she'd kicked Summer in her very tender ribs. He turned around with a hand on his head and looked at Jeannie who was still on the floor, but she shakily got back to her feet and said "Why didn't you say anything?"

"What?" Steve asked confused

"Why didn't you defend me?"

"Defend you?" Steve repeated, "Why in the hell would I defend you?!"

"She almost attacked me!"

"You fuckin deserved it!" Steve shouted back, "I can't believe you got involved in that match!"

"I saw an opportunity and I took it!" Jeannie protested but Steve put his hand up and said "I don't wanna hear it! You are not a diva and you are not a superstar! You should not have got involved!"

"You're supposed to defend me!"

"Why?"

"Because you said you loved me!" Jeannie shouted and Steve just looked at her like she'd gone crazy, it was in that moment he realised just how messed up this situation was. He needed to get away from Jeannie and lose all contact with her, because at this very moment she'd gone completely crazy and it was messing with Steve's head.

"I can't be dealing with this now" Steve said, mostly to himself but Jeannie heard him and said "But you've gotta sort out Summer!"

"Sort out what? You deserved it, in fact I'm pretty pissed at Taker for not letting her finish the job" Steve replied and Jeannie stood there looking stunned, did Steve really just say that?

"Steve" Jeannie whispered, "How could you-"

"Just. Leave" Steve enunciated each word clearly and watched Jeannie as her bottom lip trembled before she turned around to walk away; thankfully she wasn't sharing his dressing room so he could slip away without having to deal with her anymore. What he really wanted to do was speak to Summer, he wanted to apologise for what had happened and basically apologise for everything. But he couldn't find the courage to do it, so he stormed off down the corridor to go and cool down.

-

Later on in the evening Summer was in her hotel room lying on the bed thinking about everything, trying to put it all in order. She was still pretty pissed that Jeannie had managed to get a shot in on her and kick her in the ribs; it made her that mad she felt physically violent. So she had to think about something else and her mind drifted to Steve, he'd acted differently when she went for Jeannie, she thought he'd get involved and stand up for his stupid ex wife... instead he stood back and watched. If it hadn't of been for Mark, Summer would have been able to kick Jeannie's ass and Steve would have watched. He was behaving strangely lately and she wondered what the hell was going on with him.

She knew the only way to get answers was to go and talk to him, and a big part of her wanted to... but she couldn't quite summon the courage to make the first move. She was hoping Steve would do it; she wanted him to be the bigger person and make the first move so they could start rebuilding bridges. But he was too stubborn to do it and she was too nervous to do it, so they would continue to go round in circles until one of them plucked up the courage to speak to one another.

"Stubborn ass" Summer mumbled as she stretched her legs up into the air, she held them there for a while before lowering them back onto the bed. Stretching helped her relax because if she kept thinking about Jeannie, she'd end up punching someone or something. She cleared her mind but then she thought about Mark and her stomach filled with butterflies, their kiss still fresh in her mind. She was still shocked that she had actually kissed him but it was full of passion and lust, she wanted Mark badly. She still felt his arms around her and she shuddered with excitement, his lips were so soft and she wanted them all over her body.

"What am I doing?" Summer said to herself as she sat up and then put her head in her hands, why was she thinking about Mark when she'd just broken up with Steve? This was wrong!

"Oh man what's wrong with me?" Summer fell back onto the bed and just didn't know what to do. She couldn't face these problems alone yet she would feel embarrassed talking to her brothers about it. What would she do? She just didn't know who to turn to!

A knock at the door startled her, but she rolled off the bed slowly and opened the door and was surprised to see that it was Hunter, "Hey Hunter" she said as she stood back and let Hunter walk in, he kissed her forehead before walking into the room and Summer shut the door and faced him.

"I just came to check to see if you were okay" Hunter said as he looked at Summer who looked tired and in pain, "Why wouldn't I be okay?" Summer asked and Hunter just raised his eyebrows at her, which caused her to sigh and say "Okay so I'm a confused mess. Is that better?"

"Well it's honest so that's good"

"No it's not" Summer grumbled as she sat on the bed and then looked at Hunter who gave her a sympathetic smile and said "So what's eating at ya? Aside from Steve"

"I'm just pissed off with what Jeannie did"

"I know I was surprised about that too"

"I can't believe she got involved" Summer said as she felt her temper rising again, "She really gave me a good kick"

"Yeah I saw it and it did look like it hurt"

"My ribs can't take much more" Summer said as she put an arm protectively around her ribs, Hunter noticed and said "Maybe you should take some time off to let them heal"

"I can't do that can I?"

"Why not?"

"I'm the women's champion and I know that I'm gonna be involved in a few feuds with you and Steve and you cost me the belt so Steph has it"

"You know more than I do" Hunter said making Summer look at him, "I don't think I can be around Steve like that, I know it was only a match but it felt like Steve was venting some anger in those chair shots"

"I don't think it was aimed at you Summer"

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes"

"How?"

"Steve did nothing but panic earlier in the day about hurting you"

"Oh" is all Summer said as she ran a hand through her hair, she looked at Hunter and he could see that she looked as lost as Steve did. So he decided to risk it and say "You know Steve is suffering just as much as you don't you?"

"Sometimes it doesn't seem like it" Summer replied sadly but Hunter just shook his head and said "Summer you've got it all wrong, I don't think I've ever seen him this bummed out before"

"Really?" Summer asked quizzically

"Yes really, he was never this upset when he got divorced from Jeannie and Debra"

"But he won't even talk to me and when he does he barely says two words"

"He's mixed up about what to do"

"You mean he's still hung up on Jeannie?"

"No I think that that ship has sailed"

"What do you mean?" Summer asked

"He realised the minute you walked out on him that talking to Jeannie was a big mistake"

"So why hasn't he done anything about it?"

"Because he's still licking his wounds, it takes something drastic to get Steve to realise the truth and you walking out on him was probably a good thing"

"Seriously? This is a good thing?" Summer asked pretty shocked and angry but Hunter laughed a little bit and said "Calm that temper down Summer, jeez you're getting just as bad as Steve"

"Sorry" Summer mumbled making Hunter smile but say "I know it doesn't seem like a good thing now but Steve's realised his mistake and he'll make things right"

"I doubt it"

"Don't be so negative about things, I know it's difficult but my suggestion is that you hold on, just hold on and wait for him, be patient and he'll soon come back to you"

"It's not that easy" Summer replied as she was feeling the guilt deep inside for kissing Mark, she was worried about her feelings for him and what they meant. Hunter noticed that Summer looked guilty and he was curious, "Summer" he said softly, "What's happened?"

Summer just looked at him and then down at the blanket, "I erm..." she trailed off and then just didn't know what to say, "You can tell me" Hunter tried to coax it out of her and Summer cleared her throat and eventually said "I kissed Mark"

Hunter just stared at her wide eyed, "I'm sorry... what?"

"When I was in the gym earlier today, me and Mark started talking and then one thing led to another and... I kissed him"

"Summer I'm-" Hunter cut himself off and just stared at her in disbelief, did she really just tell him that?

"I feel terrible about it, but then part of me doesn't feel bad about it because I remember I'm a single woman, but then I remember how much I love Steve and want to spend forever with him but then I think about Mark and I-"

"Whoa Summer just slow down" Hunter said as he had to stop Summer talking so fast because she was rambling, "Just breathe and focus"

"Okay" Summer said as she tried to calm herself down, "I really don't know what to do about this Hunter"

"Why haven't you told your brothers?"

"Because I felt embarrassed"

"Why?"

"I can't tell them I kissed Mark, they'll kill me!"

"So answer me this" Hunter said calmly, "Do you like Mark?"

"I don't know" Summer said quietly as she looked down at the blanket, "He seems like the kind of guy who would take care of a girl and I admit I am attracted to him"

"I don't mean this in a nasty way Summer, but Mark can be a complete asshole at times"

"Can't every guy?"

"Mark loves women, he thinks they're fascinating creatures but at times he's been known to use them... and not in a good way"

"I've heard all about the things that went on in the old days, Steve was the same, and if I recall, it was you who told me that Steve used to sleep with anything that had fake boobs"

"Yes but Mark was worse than that, way worse"

"In what way?"

"Steve never used to lead women on, he told them straight whereas Mark would sleep with women and lead them on to believe he wanted a relationship, they'd do anything for him and he'd love it. Then he'd kick them to the curb and leave them heartbroken, I know he married Sara and became a 'good man' but there are times when I can see the old Mark shining through and since his divorce it's been showing more and more. I just don't want to see the same happen to you Summer, you're a good girl and you've got a good man... I'll admit a very stubborn man but a good man none the less. He loves you dearly and would put his life on the line for you, like I said just wait for him" Summer just looked at him and absorbed the words that he'd just said, Mark used to use women? It didn't sound like a thing Mark would do, but then to be honest, she didn't really know Mark... in fact she barely knew anything about him apart from his wrestling career. She didn't know how he could behave outside of work, was he a different person? Or was he the same?

Summer just looked at Hunter and just didn't know what to say, Hunter noticed this and said "Cat got your tongue?"

"No I'm just, a little surprised to hear all that"

"I know it's not pretty but it's the truth"

"So... what do I do now?"

"It's entirely up to you sweetheart, it's your choice... do you want to move on from Steve to try things with Mark?" Summer couldn't answer that question with words so she just shook her head continuously until Hunter stopped her, "Take it easy Summer, you're making my head hurt"

"I can't leave Steve, I mean I know I have but I want him back but I just don't know how"

"That's pretty easy Summer"

"No it's not"

"I can tell you Steve's hotel room number and then you can go and talk to him" Hunter replied and Summer's eyes widened in surprise, go and talk to Steve? That didn't exactly sound like an easy thing to do.

"Be brave Summer and make the first move, you'll feel better if you talk to Steve and try and get things sorted"

"What if he's with Jeannie?"

"I don't think he will be, as far as I'm aware she's staying in another room... far far away from Steve's room"

"Can't he get rid of her?"

"I think he's working on it but it's not that easy when Vince sees a business boost potential"

"But she's not a business boost; she's a pain in the ass"

"I know"

"And I don't care about her, but she's not a trained wrestler and she walked into that ring and could have injured herself"

"Like I said I think Steve's working on it"

"So if she goes away then Steve will come back?"

"I don't think it'll be that simple but yeah Steve will try and earn your trust again"

"That will take a while" Summer replied and Hunter nodded, "I agree you should make him work for it, but don't treat him badly otherwise he'll think you're like his exes"

"I wouldn't do that" Summer replied, "But he is gonna work for it"

"Make him start tonight by talking to him" Hunter said and stood up and gently pulled Summer up with him, "Go on"

"Alright I'm going I'm going" Summer replied, "What's his number?"

"615"

"Not far from me"

"He always tries to get a room closer to you"

"Why?"

"To keep an eye on you"

"Oh"

"I know it's a confusing situation Summer but love doesn't just go away, Steve wants to spend forever with you and he'd still go out of his way to protect you" Summer nodded at that and then said "Thank you" and pulled him into a hug. Hunter hugged her back and said "No problem, you know I think of you as family and I protect family" Summer smiled at that and then let him go as they headed towards the door. Summer grabbed her key card before letting Hunter out first so he could head back to his room. He kissed her forehead one more time before saying "Go get him" and then heading towards the elevators to head back to his floor. Summer watched him leave and then took a few deep breaths before heading down the corridor to find Steve's room.

A million things were running through her mind as she walked further down the corridor, what the hell would she say to him? Could she tell him about what happened with Mark? Would he forgive her?

She stopped outside his room and tried to stop the butterflies in her tummy, should she knock? More to the point, would he answer?

There was only one way to find out, so she slowly reached out, hesitated for a while and then finally knocked on the door...